gagaladyfandomcom-20200213-history
Dance in the Dark
"Dance in the Dark" is a song by American recording artist Lady GaGa, from her second studio album The Fame Monster. It was released on July 26, 2010. Recorded in 2009, the song was inspired by the intimate experience between two people alone in a bedroom. According to Gaga, "the record is about a girl who likes to have sex with the lights off because she is embarrassed about her body." She explained that she came across such women while working on the MAC AIDS Fund, and that the song is not about freedom, but rather the assurance that Gaga understood their feelings. The song was initially planned to be released after "Telephone" but due to a dispute between Gaga and her record company, "Alejandro" was released instead. The song however, was officially serviced to Australian radio on July 26, 2010 as the fourth single from The Fame Monster following "Alejandro". Background Bill Lamb from About.com characterized the song as dealing with the "artifice of appearance". To the Los Angels Times, Gaga described the inspiration behind "Dance in the Dark" as being the intimate experience taking place between two people alone in a bedroom, the fear of Sex Monster. According to her, the record is about a girl who likes to have sex with the lights off, because she is embarrassed about her body. "She doesn't want her man to see her naked. She will be free, and she will let her inner animal out, but only when the lights are out", Gaga explained. She added that like the song, she has to struggle with issues of body image and self-doubt in her own life. While working on the MAC AIDS Fund, she realised that women of her age do not speak their mind, in fear that their boyfriends would not love them if they did so. "All of these new things entering my life are changing the way I view my purpose, but in the Dark' in particular is about me wanting to live — but also, the song isn’t called 'Dance in the Light'. I’m not a gospel singer trying to cross people over. What I’m saying is, 'I get it. I feel you, I feel the same way, and it’s OK.' "I hope and pray that I can inspire some sort of change in people subliminally through the show. They’re singing 'Dance in the Dark,' but they’re dancing and they’re free, they’re letting it out. But the songs are not about freedom, they’re about fact that I get it. I feel the way you feel." According to MTV, the song was initially planned to be released after "Telephone" but due to a dispute between Gaga and her record company, "Alejandro" was released instead. The song was released to the Belgian iTunes as a promotional single from the album, along with "Alejandro". Critical Reception Bill Lamb from About.com praised the song, stating: "Going for an epic, tragic pop song, 'Dance in the Dark' churns along, heavy and gutsy with a sing-along chorus that is one of the best in Gaga's repertoire. This is my favorite type of pop because it has a lot of layers. The beat hits you first, and you can groove to the track on just that alone, but the melody asks politely for you to switch partners before Gaga smoothly cuts in and twirls you away into pop heaven." Paul Lester from BBC felt that the song was "generic machine RnB". Evan Sawdey from PopMatter commented that "Dance in the Dark", along with "Monster" are "delightfully dirty retro workout ... to make for one surprisingly effective pop cocktail." Scott Plagenhoef from Pitchfork Media felt that Gaga had morphed into Madonna on the song. Nick Levine from Digital Spy commented that "'Dance in the Dark' is the sort of song that, well, makes you want to dance with your top off in a grotty German bondage basement." Edna Gunderson from USA Today called the song "campy". Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine commented that "'Bad Romance and 'Dance in the Dark' are stacked with towering new-wave synths and seemingly endless hooks; if melodies could be time-stamped, these would have "'80s" branded on their asses. ... The song isn't a cautionary tale per se, but a call to arms to misfits everywhere." She went on to declare the song as one of the highlights of The Fame Monster but added that "After a stuttering intro of orgasmic groans it becomes a little bit Gaga-by-numbers, which is a shame given the standard of the early tracks". Ben Patashnik from NME felt that "Dance in the Dark", along with another song "Monster", was "slightly disposable". Michael Hubbard from MusicOMH complimented the song for its "monumental chorus and some Madonna-esque spoken-word moments, including this shout out to a lost Royal: 'You will never fall apart Diana, you're still in our hearts / Never let you fall apart/ Together we'll dance in the dark.'" Music Video Prior to and following the release of "Dance in the Dark", rumors have been circulating on various sites including Twitter that Joseph Kahn will be directing the music video. There has been no word from GaGa and her team.